


Broken Road

by tmylm



Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-11
Updated: 2019-05-26
Packaged: 2020-02-29 19:27:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18784657
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tmylm/pseuds/tmylm
Summary: A cross-country road trip and a flat tire that justmightchange Chloe's life forever. We'll see!





	1. Chloe

**Author's Note:**

> I have a ton of ideas for this fic, but this chapter is just kind of setting the scene, so I hope you guys will stick with me. You can find my tumblr [here](http://snowbritt.tumblr.com/) for any comments, questions or suggestions, including whether you'd like to see this continued! (Or simply leave me a comment right here on the chapter.)
> 
> ****New ending has been added to this chapter!**

“Okay, so maybe we didn’t need three packets of those gummy worms.”

Chloe’s frown is set deeply on her fresh, makeup-less face as she looks into the backseat of her car. Before their trip begun, they’d worked out a schedule where each would take their turn in the driver’s seat, and Aubrey is currently the one behind the wheel. It’s the first time Chloe has really looked at the mass amounts of unnecessary luggage the two have brought with them.

In hindsight, maybe they’d bought a few too many snacks, too. Especially taking into consideration everything they both have packed.

Then again, if you were to ask Chloe, everything she has brought with her is entirely needed. Makeup? Needed. Curling iron? Duh. Clothes? Obviously. The notebook she bought at least two years ago now and is still yet to write more than her name in fancy calligraphy across the inner front page? Of course.

This isn’t like a brief weekend trip to one of their parents’ homes. Chloe and Aubrey take those all the time. This is different. It’s their first real, long road trip, something they have been talking about since freshman year. Three years have passed, and now they have this summer, then they’ll be starting their senior year at Barden University in the fall, then life will really begin. Careers, mortgages, adult life, all of the things the girls really do not want to think about just yet. That’s what this is for; this road trip is their last hurrah as young adults with minimal responsibilities, before they’re taking that all too permanent step into the big, wide world.

Chloe drove them from Georgia through Alabama, with Aubrey taking over through Arkansas, before they switched back to drive through Oklahoma. Next they’ll hit Texas, then a couple other places until they’re finally arriving in California. They’re headed up North to San Francisco, to be exact. It’s a place the two best friends have talked about moving to after graduation, though neither has ever actually visited. So, really, there’s a lot riding on this trip, and Chloe’s excitement knows no bounds.

“Can you see the pretzels back there?” Aubrey asks, looking briefly into the backseat through the rearview mirror. The blonde is actually a very careful driver, though that’s not surprising; she does everything very precisely. Her eyes are back on the road within seconds.

“Mm…” Chloe leans through the gap in the seats to reach for what she thinks is the correct package.

“Careful, Chlo!” Aubrey’s voice is shrill as she swerves slightly, and Chloe quietly thinks maybe that was kind of an exaggeration for contact as minor as the way her arm had brushed against her friend’s.

“Sorry, sorry. Here.” Chloe grasps the corner of the bag, something of a proud smile on her lips as she realizes she has, in fact, retrieved the correct one. The car seems to jut a little bit, and there’s a strange sound coming from the back. Maybe Aubrey’s reaction hadn’t been too off beat, after all.

The redhead glances over at her friend, and it’s clear Aubrey can tell something’s going on, too. “Something feels weird,” she comments, face setting into an almost concentrated frown as she looks for a safe place to pull over. “I think maybe we have a flat.”

That’s the last thing they need. Especially since Chloe took her spare tire out of the trunk to make room for all of their luggage before their trip. It had seemed like a good idea at the time; she has been driving for five years now and never has she had a reason to change her tire, she didn’t see any need for it now. Evidently, she’d been wrong.

The road they’re on, it’s like something from a horror movie. It’s kind of deserted, and with the heat from the summer sun bouncing down onto the asphalt, it almost looks as if the ground is smoking in certain lights. Fortunately, this isn’t a horror movie – if it were, this would all be happening at night time. Chloe’s blue eyes flicker toward the digital clock on the display to check the time just as Aubrey begins rolling the car smoothly into a small side road to park up. Just after eleven in the morning, she notices. Definitely not horror movie time.

“What do we do?” Aubrey asks once the engine is cut, turning to look at Chloe. She seems tired more so than worried.

“I don’t know,” the redhead admits, quickly unfastening her seatbelt. “I mean, we don’t know for sure that that’s what’s wrong, right?” She pushes open the passenger door, with Aubrey following suit from the driver’s side. Soon enough, both women are standing in the Oklahoma heat, gawking at the deflating tire.

“You shouldn’t have taken the spare out, Chloe,” Aubrey says very matter-of-factly, to which Chloe scoffs audibly.

“How was I supposed to know we’d need it? Nobody ever needs their spares.”

“Clearly they do,” Aubrey retorts.

That’s the thing with being as close with your best friend as Chloe and Aubrey are, it’s easy to bicker like sisters sometimes, exactly the way they are right now. It won’t fix their problem, but apparently placing blame is the way to go.

“Maybe if we call my dad…”

Aubrey cuts her off. “Call your dad? He’s in Rhode Island, Chloe. What is he going to do from there?”

“I don’t know! Do you have a better idea?”

This isn’t getting them anywhere, and eventually Aubrey is throwing her hands up into the air, before stalking back off to sit in the driver’s seat with the door open, and Chloe bites her tongue to keep from groaning in frustration.

Aubrey’s reaction is really not her fault. Before their trip, her aunt had fallen ill and been taken into the hospital. They’d considered not going, so Aubrey could be home with her family, but everybody, including her aunt, had insisted they leave as planned. So, although they had, Aubrey had been on edge the whole time. Chloe couldn’t blame her for that.

“Look,” Chloe sighs, shuffling over to the driver’s side to offer her friend an apologetic look. “We’ll figure it out, okay? It’s just a flat tire. Maybe we can walk back to the gas station back there, they’ll probably have those hand pumps, right? We’ll inflate it again, then we can go.”

Neither girl had noticed there was even another car on the otherwise empty road with them until it was pulling up beside them, window rolling down.

Chloe’s gaze shifts toward the newly parked vehicle.

“Uh, everything okay?” A brunette calls from inside, her head motioning to the flat tire. “That doesn’t look great.”

Aubrey is a natural leader, a trait she apparently got from her father, so she’s soon climbing back out of the car to see who has come to their rescue. Chloe can tell by the look in her friend’s eyes that the other woman isn’t exactly the hero she’d been picturing.

“Not really. Do you know anything about cars? Or tires, more specifically,” Chloe frowns, stepping back to take in the sight of the now even more deflated circle. The whole car has sagged to one side with it.

“I know that you need to change that,” the brunette responds as she climbs from her own car to join them. She’s driving a truck, a kind of beat up looking one really, but Chloe isn’t here to judge. Soon, she’s standing beside them, and Chloe can’t help but notice, in spite of the situation, just how pretty she is. She’s shorter than both Aubrey and Chloe. There’s a red flannel around her waist, tied around a pair of faded jean shorts. Then again, she could be wearing a trash bag and it wouldn’t matter; on this deserted road right now, she’s an angel in disguise.

“We can’t just pump it back up?” Aubrey questions, breaking into Chloe’s thoughts. It’s really not the time for her to be thinking about how attractive this stranger is. They have a schedule to stick to, and now a flat tire holding them back.

The shorter girl shakes her head in response, hands balled into fists that settle on her waist. “Nope. That thing is busted, you need to change it. Do you have a spare?”

Chloe looks a little sheepish in response, and she can feel Aubrey’s glare burning into her. The brunette, however, seems to chuckle quietly, causing Chloe to raise a brow.

“I’ll take that as a no. Don’t worry,” she shrugs, heading back over to her car, “I do.”

“You’re just going to give us a tire?” Chloe asks, brow quirking once more as she watches the shorter girl lift the lid of her trunk. The way she leans into it has her all but disappearing, though she’s soon standing with what they need. It looks like the weight of it could topple her over at any moment, but she seems to have it handled.

“Sure,” she shrugs, lugging it over to them. She lays the tire down on the ground by Chloe’s car, then heads back over to her own to grab a few more necessities. “We’ll call it my good deed for the year.”

Aubrey looks a little unsure, but Chloe can’t help the amused look creeping onto her face. This girl is definitely an angel in disguise, there’s really no doubting that.

“We’ll pay you,” Aubrey insists, with Chloe piping up, “Oh, totes.”

“Totes?” The brunette questions, her own expression somewhat amused now. Chloe just nods, a little too enthusiastically.

“Do you know how to change it?” The redhead asks, watching with fascination as the shorter girl tosses a couple tools almost lazily onto the ground.

Seriously, _is_ she an angel? Where did she even come from? Why does she have exactly what they need, and exactly the right tools to fix their problem? Chloe realizes that questioning it is stupid. Why question a good thing, right?

“Yeah, I do. You want me to do it for you?”

Chloe nods her head, though Aubrey interrupts.

“No, that’s okay. I’m sure we’ll figure it out.”

Both Chloe and Aubrey know fully well that neither has any business in trying to change a tire. Chloe shoots her friend a look.

“You sure?” The brunette asks, glancing from one girl to the other and then back again. Her brow is arched, hands planted on her hips again. “You don’t look so sure.”

Chloe can’t help the small laugh that leaves her lips in response to the knowing look on the probably-angel’s face, especially paired with the annoyed one on Aubrey’s. It seems the blonde has taken something of an instant dislike to their savior, and Chloe doesn’t really understand why, but she chooses not to ask her. Not yet, anyway. She’ll question her once they’re in the car and back on the road. Not in front of the other girl.

“We don’t know how to change a tire,” Chloe admits. “It would be really helpful if you could do it, yes.”

The shorter girl shrugs, before plopping down onto the ground beside the vehicle. Aubrey looks a little skeptical, but backs over to the side and out of the way. In keeping with the deserted horror movie road, there are a couple large rocks for them to perch on, so Aubrey wastes no time in taking a seat, though Chloe can see that she’s eyeing the shorter girl the whole time. It makes sense; Aubrey has never been very quick to trust a person. Chloe, however, is the exact opposite. It’s kind of a problem.

“Do you need any help?” Chloe asks, peering over to see what the other girl is doing. She can see that she’s gotten to work already.

“No, not right now. I might need one of you to hand me something soon, but I’ve got it for now. It shouldn’t take too long.”

Chloe nods, even though the brunette isn’t focusing on her, then goes to take a seat beside her best friend. She doesn’t even notice Aubrey looking over at her as skeptically as she is, since all of her own focus is trained on the girl currently taking off her tire.

“What are you doing?” Aubrey hisses, nudging Chloe with her elbow.

The redhead looks up at her with a slight frown. “What?”

“Well, for starters, you’re practically drooling all over yourself. What has gotten into you?” Her words are hushed, definitely enough that the shorter girl can’t hear her. There’s a tinge of red creeping across Chloe’s otherwise pale cheeks in response, however.

“Well, yeah,” she whispers back, eyes still on the brunette. “Have you _seen_ her?”

Aubrey doesn’t respond, but Chloe can tell as she looks over at the other girl, eyes practically piercing into her, that she doesn’t see exactly what Chloe does. That doesn’t matter, though. The two have different tastes.

The brunette’s voice breaks into their conversation. “Where are you two headed?”

“San Fransisco,” Chloe explains. “We started out in Georgia, where we go to school. We’re thinking about moving out to San Fran after graduation, but we have to actually visit first before we can make any definite plans. We still have a pretty long way to go yet, but we’re in no hurry.”

Her words pull a burning stare from Aubrey. “We have a schedule,” she hisses quietly, though Chloe waves her off, standing from the rock the two have been occupying.

“Where are you from?” She questions, edging toward the shorter girl.

“Here. I don’t plan to stay here, though. I’m headed to LA at some point pretty soon.”

“Oh? That’s exciting.” Chloe is standing right beside her now, but quickly lowers herself to sit down on the ground. “What are you going to do in LA?”

“Stuff.”

“Stuff? Mysterious,” Chloe teases, blue eyes glistening slightly. She can hear Aubrey clearing her throat behind her, like she’s trying to not-so-subtly grab her attention. Chloe ignores her.

“I don’t think I got your name.”

“I don’t think you asked for it,” the brunette shrugs, finally looking over at Chloe. “Beca.”

“Beca,” Chloe echoes, nodding her head once. “That’s pretty. I’m Chloe.” She motions over her shoulder with her thumb, “That’s Aubrey.”

The mention of her name has the blonde piping up once more. “Is this going to take a long time? It’s just that we have a lot of driving to do.”

Chloe shoots her a warning glance over her shoulder.

“Ignore her, she’s just impatient. There’s really no rush.”

Regardless of whether they’re in a hurry or not, it seems that Beca has things under control, and it isn’t long before she’s fixing the new tire in place, the old one laying deflated on its side beside them. Beca stands up, taking a step back to admire her work.

“All done,” she states, gently tapping the tire with her foot. “Good as new.”

Chloe had retreated back toward the rock with Aubrey, but she stands at the same time Beca does, shuffling to her side and looking down at the new tire. “Wow, you’re practically a wizard,” she beams, crystal eyes glistening once more in the light of the sun. She can’t be sure, but she thinks she sees Beca looking into them for a brief second, though the shorter girl eventually pulls her focus away, instead just shaking her head.

“Not a wizard,” she laughs somewhat awkwardly, “I just know how to change a tire.”

“Good thing you do. We would’ve been screwed,” Chloe frowns, though as her gaze meets with Beca’s again, she smooths out her expression into a small, appreciative smile. It’s something she notices is returned.

“We’ll Venmo you some money,” Aubrey says from behind them, and Chloe can’t help but feel almost sad that this whole meeting is coming to an end already. She has no idea why she cares so much, but she kind of wants to spend a little more time with Beca.

“Will $50 cover it?” Apparently, Aubrey doesn’t share Chloe’s need to be here any longer than necessary. Maybe it’s a good thing, though. Chloe has a habit of getting attached pretty easily, and she has no business doing so with someone she’ll likely never see again.

From the corner of her eye, Chloe sees Beca’s head snap in Aubrey’s direction, and wonders if maybe she was still watching her before.

“I don’t need any money, it’s fine,” Beca promises with a small shake of her head.

Aubrey, always willing to pay her way — both she and Chloe come from families who have never been shy of money — seems horrified at the thought of them accepting help for free. “No,” she interjects, “We insist.”

The two go back and forth for a minute or two, Aubrey trying to urge the fifty dollars onto Beca, while Beca insists that she doesn’t want it. It’s all kind of amusing really, and while it prolongs their time together, Chloe decides eventually that it’s time to shut it down.

“Aubrey,” she pipes up, turning toward her friend. “If Beca doesn’t want money, she doesn’t want money. We respect that.”

Aubrey looks annoyed, but doesn’t respond, at least not right away. Chloe shifts on the spot to face Beca now.

“But at least let us take you out to dinner tonight.”

The look in Beca’s eyes is one of slight confusion. Aubrey had been trying to hurry her along earlier, adamant that they had to get going. However, she doesn’t interject now. Evidently, she’d rather pay her way in some form than stick to their tight schedule, and for that, Chloe is thankful.

“You really don’t have to do that...”

“Beca,” Chloe shakes her head, slipping her phone from the back pocket of her shorts. “We insist.” She unlocks the screen and hands it over to the shorter girl. “Here, put your number in. We’re going to find a hotel for tonight, I think we could both use a break from driving anyway. So you text us and let us know where there’s a good restaurant around here and that’ll be that.”

The brunette continues to eye her skeptically for a moment, but before long she’s reaching out to accept the phone, and Chloe watches her tap her number onto the screen. She bites back her smirk at the car emoji Beca inserts beside her name before handing the device back over.

“If you have my number, how am I supposed to—”

Beca is cut off by the sound of her ringtone, and quickly reaches into her own pocket for her phone. There’s a look of amusement on Chloe’s face as she hits end on the call once Beca has stared at her screen almost quizzically.

“There. Now you have my number, too.”

**_Continue? No? ___**


	2. Beca

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your patience, I hope you all enjoy chapter two! Again, my tumblr is right [here](http://snowbritt.tumblr.com/) for any questions, suggestions or feedback, but comments are totally appreciated, too.

Maybe it’s a little strange, but Beca tries hard to maintain her air of mystery, to be the queen of dark eyeliner and withdrawing from those around her. She’s done it with her parents, who are still not too pleased with her for opting not to go to college. She loves them, she really does, she’s just… She’s kind of a loner, that’s all. Maybe a bit too focused on her future.

But then she’s driving along an almost sinisterly quiet road, and a flash of orange catches her eye, and suddenly she’s pulled right back in.

It’s not like Beca _can’t_ do nice things for other people. She does them all the time. It’s just that pulling over and changing a tire for two total strangers has kind of cut into the day she had planned. But she doesn’t mind.

She thinks about those eyes. Piercing, blue. And she doesn’t mind.

And Beca knows that’s a dangerous thought.

For a little while, she considers not texting Chloe at all. Changing the tire really was nothing, she doesn’t need the girls to repay her in any way, so the two of them taking her to dinner is really not necessary. Eventually, though, somewhere around four, Chloe calls her.

“Beca, hey! It’s Chloe. You were supposed to text me.”

“Oh, hey. Yeah, sorry. I guess I got caught up. You know, you really don’t have to take me to dinner, right?”

Chloe’s tone is light as she responds. “I’m taking you. You have to let me,” she lowers her voice slightly, “Aubrey would never let me forget it if we didn’t pay you back in some way. You saw how scary she can be.”

It’s clear that she’s joking, and Beca finds herself chuckling softly under her breath. Aubrey had seemed standoffish, maybe a little annoyed about their situation, but Beca wouldn’t really use the word _scary_ to describe her.

“Speaking of Aubrey,” Chloe continues, “She isn’t feeling so great, so she’s probably going to stay here at the hotel. Is that okay? If it’s just you and me for dinner?”

A part of her thinks that she should say no. Maybe this is her out. She probably won’t have any fun anyway. Chloe, although nicer than Aubrey, doesn’t really seem like Beca’s kind of person. She should say no, forget about those crystal blue eyes, let Chloe go back to being the damsel in distress whose tire she changed that one time.

“Beca?”

“Sorry, yeah.” She really hadn’t even realized she’d paused for so long until Chloe’s voice cuts into her thoughts.

“That okay?”

“Yeah, definitely,” she hears herself saying. “Just you and me. That’s fine.”

***

She shouldn’t go. She knows she shouldn’t, because Beca doesn’t need this kind of distraction. But the clock hits six fifty-five, and Beca is pulling into the parking lot of the bar-slash-restaurant she’d settled on, eyes immediately catching sight of Chloe’s car.

The redhead is standing beside it. She squints toward Beca’s windshield, then begins waving enthusiastically. And Beca isn’t worried anymore. She isn’t regretting showing up.

She doesn’t know why.

“Hey!” Chloe greets cheerfully once Beca is out of the car, her red curls draped over one shoulder. Beca notices that she’s wearing a different outfit to the one she had on this morning. Chloe is wearing a dress, it hugs her waist but floats out immediately after. She looks good, Beca notices. She doesn’t like that she notices, but she does.

“You look pretty,” Chloe states, catching Beca off guard. She, of course, had changed, too. Her black skinny jeans, white shirt and black leather jacket isn’t exactly as dressy as Chloe’s outfit, but she appreciates the compliment nonetheless, even if she does feel her cheeks darkening a shade. She isn’t used to random compliments. She hopes her makeup will cover it.

“Thanks.” She tucks a chunk of hair behind her ear; it’s loose now, whereas she’d had it tied up in a messy bun this morning. “So do you. I like your dress.”

Beca doesn’t give out random compliments either. She really doesn’t know what’s happening.

“Thank you, it’s one of my favorites.” Chloe beams, motioning toward the building. Beca is wearing boots with a slight heel, and they click against the ground as she hurries to catch up with Chloe.

“So, what’s wrong with Aubrey?” She questions as she grabs the door, holding it open for the taller girl to walk in first. She doesn’t even think about the gesture, she just does it. Chloe doesn’t question it either.

“She has a headache,” Chloe responds as she makes her way inside, offering Beca a gracious smile as she slips in ahead of her. “But she also has some family stuff going on, so I think she just kind of needed the break.”

Beca nods, and feels almost guilty for the fleeting thought that she was glad, once they’d hung up the phone this afternoon, that Aubrey wouldn’t be joining them. It didn’t make much sense to her, considering she’d been thinking of using Aubrey’s absence as an out, but it had crossed her mind, nonetheless.

“You know, this place looks cool and all,” Chloe begins, though pauses for a moment, as if trying to figure out how to navigate it. It’s really just a bar, there’s nobody to seat them, something Chloe seems to realize pretty quickly, and then she’s turning to look at Beca with a small frown on her face. “But when I said I was taking you to dinner, I really meant something more like a restaurant.” That frown, the way her nose has scrunched, it’s honestly kind of adorable. Beca thinks so, anyway, and finds herself chuckling softly under her breath.

“I’m not really a fancy restaurant kind of girl,” the brunette admits with a slight shrug of her shoulder. “This place is more my scene. Besides, the food here is really good.”

“What, is it just, like, wings and stuff?” Chloe questions. She doesn’t look like she’s too sold on Beca’s eatery of choice.

“Well, yeah. But they’re really good wings.” She’s kind of teasing, and finds herself sending Chloe a wink. It was evidently the right thing to do, because the other girl’s expression is suddenly softening, there’s a smile curving at the corners of her mouth, and it doesn’t seem she’s going to continue to protest.

“Fine. They’d better be the best wings Oklahoma has to offer, though.” Chloe’s smile, somewhat smug now, is still in place. Beca mirrors it without thought, before motioning with her head for the redhead to follow her over toward a free booth, one she usually occupies alone.

There are two menus laid out on the table, and once Beca has slipped into her seat, she nudges one toward Chloe. “There you go, check out the wing collection.”

Considering this is one of Beca’s favorite places, she’s entirely aware that there are many more options on the menu, and can’t help the way she grins as she watches Chloe’s eyes scan over the options, evidently realizing, too.

“Better than you thought, right?”

There’s a glare shot across the table at her, but it’s a playful one. “Fine,” the redhead says, “I take back my judgment.”

She gets the feeling, as she watches Chloe take in everything on the menu in front of her, that the other girl doesn’t really frequent places like this. There’s a bar, a couple pool tables, and some sports game playing on the television. It’s not the expensive restaurant Beca imagines Chloe is used to, but she’s confident that she won’t be disappointed. At least she hopes she won’t, anyway. She doesn’t want to disappoint her.

And she doesn’t know why.

***

It’s a very lax environment, but their order is taken eventually — Beca finds it amusing that Chloe throws a side of honey bbq wings onto the end of their order — and it’s not just the beer she’s slowly sipping on that has Beca thinking about how easy this girl is to talk to. She’s chipper, she’s breezy, she’s basically the polar opposite of herself, but for some reason, Beca doesn’t hate being here with her.

“Are you in school?” Chloe asks as she grabs a fry from her plate once their food has arrived. She pops it into her mouth, eyeing Beca for a moment. “What’s your story?”

That’s a loaded question. Beca doesn’t like talking about herself.

But she’ll open up for Chloe.

She doesn’t know why.

“Nope, no school,” she states with a short shake of her head. “My parents are pretty pissed about it. I mean, my dad’s a college professor, so you can imagine how well it went down when I told him I wasn’t going, right? I would’ve gotten a free ride if I’d gone to his school, but college isn’t really for me.”

Chloe shrugs as she swallows her bite of food, nodding her head in understanding. “School isn’t for everyone. I mean, I personally love it, but I know plenty of people who don’t.” She stares down at her plate for a moment, almost like she’s contemplating something, before eventually picking up her burger with both hands. The idea that she was considering using a knife and fork flashes through Beca’s mind, but she holds back her amusement.

“What do you--” Chloe pauses, gaze meeting Beca’s. “What?”

So maybe she hadn’t done as good a job at holding back her amused smirk as she thought she had, though she doesn’t realize it until Chloe is curiously eyeing her.

“Nothing,” she says, quickly shaking her head and reaching for a fry from her own plate. What is she supposed to say, ‘I was just smiling at you being adorable’? “What were you going to ask me? What do I...?”

Fortunately, Chloe doesn’t push, and seems to snap quickly back to her original thought. “What do you plan to do in LA? You said you’re headed out there, right?”

Beca really, really doesn’t like talking about herself. She’s a private person, and after hearing her father tell her over and over that her career dream of choice is, in fact, not a career, and is instead a hobby, she doesn’t really like talking to people about it. But Chloe is looking at her expectantly, so what can she do?

“I want to be a DJ. I eventually want to produce music,” she finally states, waiting for an amused reaction. She’s almost surprised when it doesn’t come.

Instead, Chloe looks fascinated, her blue eyes lighting up somehow. Beca is sure the shade has changed to an even brighter one than before.

“Really? That sounds so cool,” the redhead comments, and it’s clear by her tone of voice that she’s being genuine. She’s not just trying to make Beca feel better.

“You think?”

“I do,” Chloe nods, almost a little eagerly. “I would love to be able to do something like that. Honestly, I still don’t really know what I want to do, but you have things figured out, and I think that’s really admirable.”

Beca doesn’t really know why her cheeks are heating up, a tint of pink prickling under the surface.

“You know it’s not that hot in here, right?” Chloe questions, setting the remainder of her burger down on her plate.

Beca’s brow raises. “What?”

“Your face keeps going red.”

At that, Beca feels her cheeks heat up further as she glances down at her plate, though the soft, almost singsong sound of Chloe’s light laugh has her glancing back up again.

“Don’t be embarrassed,” Chloe states, her eyes soft, kind. Her tone of voice has softened, too. “It’s sweet.”

Beca can’t help but feel like this isn’t just a ‘thank you for the tire’ dinner, especially as her gaze meets Chloe’s. But she doesn’t question it. She doesn’t give herself the time to, in fact, and instead clears her throat as she tears her eyes away from the other girl, glancing back over her shoulder and toward the pool tables. “How are you at pool?” There are three tables, and two of them are unoccupied. “You want to play once we’re done eating?”

***

They finish up their food pretty quickly, and both grab another beer from the bar, before making their way over to one of the free tables. According to Chloe, she isn’t very good, but she seemed into the idea of playing regardless, and watches in fascination as Beca begins to set up the balls.

“How do you know the order to put them in?” She questions, peering over Beca’s shoulder. She’s close enough that Beca can smell perfume wafting toward her nose. It’s a nice smell, it’s sweet. It’s strangely familiar.

“It’s pretty easy,” Beca shrugs. “You just set them up so that there are no solids beside solids or stripes beside stripes.” She glances over her shoulder at the other girl. “Or that’s what I do anyway, but I like that you think I’m cool enough to know how to correctly set up a game of pool.”

“I mean, you do seem pretty cool,” Chloe grins, picking up the two cues balancing against the side of the table. She holds one out toward Beca. “We’ll see how cool you are once you’re getting your butt kicked by a beginner in just a minute, though.”

This girl is definitely easy to be around, Beca thinks as she notices her own smile, the way it’s eased onto her lips almost too naturally. And that’s a feat really, because Beca Mitchell doesn’t generally like spending time with anybody.

She likes spending time with Chloe, though. At least so far.

“You want to break?” She offers, motioning to the table. The game is set up and ready to go, and Chloe seems pretty excited about it.

“I’ll try,” she decides, hurrying around the table to lean over and line up her cue with the white ball. Beca watches her as she takes the first shot, the balls scattering, with two solids rolling into separate pockets almost expertly.

“Whoa. Okay, pool shark,” Beca laughs a little, genuinely surprised.

“I forgot to tell you,” Chloe states as she stands upright again, blowing the end of the cue as if to filter out smoke. She grins toward Beca. “I lied before. I’m awesome.”

Their first game, Chloe does as she said she would, and completely kicks Beca’s butt. It’s honestly kind of impressive, and it’s clear when Chloe goes to the bar to grab them each another beer that she’s having fun. Beca is, too. Evidently, she hasn’t disappointed her. At least not yet, anyway.

While she obviously does know what she’s doing, about halfway through their third game, it seems that Chloe has herself stumped, and she eyes the table for a moment, nose scrunching in thought.

“You stuck?” Beca questions, walking around the table to stand beside her and see the setup from her view. She can see the confusion, but she also sees a way for Chloe to make the shot, too. “Want some help?”

The redhead frowns at the table a moment longer, before nodding her head. “Maybe just a little.”

Beca’s laugh is soft and raspy as she points to the white ball. “Okay, hit it right here, and you want to aim for the side rather than any of the balls.”

Chloe nods, then leans over to do as instructed, but Beca sees that she isn’t lining it up right.

“No, not like that,” the brunette shakes her head, setting her cue down against the side of the table. “Here, look.” She makes her way behind Chloe, and it’s without thought that her hands settle gently on the taller girl’s arms, guiding her where to go. Her pale skin feels soft beneath her fingertips, and the added height from her heels helps her to see over Chloe’s shoulder.

They make the shot together, and Beca wonders why she gave the point to her opponent. She’s generally a pretty competitive person, but the grin on Chloe’s face as she watches the ball roll into the pocket is totally worth taking a loss.

Beca doesn’t even notice the time.

They play a couple more games, the scores pretty even in the end, but eventually they head back to their booth, and Chloe orders another beer. Beca would really like to keep drinking too, but she’s also not trying to drive while drunk, so she switches to soda. Chloe’s thought process is evidently not the same.

“Are you glad you agreed to go to dinner with me?” Chloe asks, eyes lighting up all over again as she sips coolly from her bottle. “I know you didn’t want to, but I think you’re having fun. I know I am, anyway.”

Beca shakes her head, reaching for one of their empty bottles and beginning to absentmindedly play with the label wrapped around the neck. “I didn’t _not_ want to. I just didn’t think you needed to pay me back in any way. It was just a tire.”

Chloe’s eyes grow wider, and this time they’re not sparkling with the same curiosity or wonderment they seem to have done throughout the night so far. Instead, they look sad, her bottom lip begins to quiver. “So you’re not glad that you agreed?”

Eyes widening also, Beca quickly shakes her head once more. “No! No, I am. I’m glad we’re doing--”

She’s cut off by the sound of Chloe’s singsong giggle all over again. “Wow, you’re really easy to freak out,” the redhead grins, taking another sip from her beer.

Beca looks back at her as if she’s crazy for a moment, though she’s soon scowling, but it’s a playful one. She knows Chloe can see that too, given the way her lips are arched slightly upward at the corners. “You kind of suck, you know that?”

“Hm, maybe,” Chloe hums, setting her bottle down in front of her. Her eyes are back to glistening in that familiar way again as she locks her gaze with Beca’s. “But you’re still here with me.”

She’s right, she is. And while Beca had been trying to think of excuses as to why she shouldn’t have agreed to this earlier, she’s suddenly glad that she hadn’t listened to the responsible side of herself then. Her evening with Chloe has been much better than the one she would’ve spent at home with her roommate, and getting to see those eyes again? Totally worth it.

“You have a habit of staring, you know?” Chloe’s voice breaks into her thoughts, and Beca is almost embarrassed for a moment, until she realizes the other girl is staring right back at her. This time, she doesn’t scramble to pull her focus away. Instead, she just looks. She really lets herself _look_.

“Yeah?”

“Mhm,” Chloe nods. “But that’s okay. I like it.”

***

This was supposed to be just dinner, but it’s pretty late by the time they leave, and they’re only doing so because the bar is closing for the night. Beca has stuck to soda, though Chloe has gotten progressively more intoxicated throughout the evening. She isn’t _wasted_ , at least Beca doesn’t think so, but there’s no way she should be driving, so she isn’t going to let her.

She protests at first, insisting that she’s fine, but eventually Chloe caves, and soon Beca is helping to buckle her into the passenger seat of her car. Chloe’s will be fine left at the bar overnight, then Beca will drive to her hotel in the morning and bring her back to get it.

“You know, if you want to spend more time with me, you just have to say so. You don’t have to pretend like you’re worried about me driving,” Chloe teases once Beca is seated in the driver’s side. The brunette playfully rolls her eyes, before starting up the car.

She’d asked earlier which hotel Chloe and Aubrey were staying at. It’s close by, Beca knows it, and she’s soon driving toward it with Chloe relaxing back into the passenger seat. Her eyes are closed, Beca notices as she steals a glance toward her. She steals multiple, in fact.

She doesn’t really understand why she’s smiling to herself the way she is.

Or why an overwhelming sadness washes over her once she’s pulling up outside of the entrance to the hotel.

“Wake up, sleeping beauty. We’re here,” Beca announces as she puts the car in park. She looks over toward Chloe, whose eyes are still closed. It’s possible she’s a little more drunk than Beca had realized.

“I’m not sleeping,” the redhead mumbles, voice lazy. “Just resting my eyes.”

Beca chuckles to herself in response. “Well, time to unrest them. We’re back at your hotel.”

Chloe lets out a soft sigh through her parted lips, but eventually opens her eyes, pushing herself upright and reaching for the handle of the door. “Fine, fine. I might need a little help finding my room, though.”

Instinctively, Beca’s eyes drift toward the clock. It’s late, she really should be getting home. Though it’s clear, as she watches Chloe opening up the door and trying to climb out with her seatbelt still fastened in place that she really could use the help. Beca bites back a laugh at the sight, then eventually cuts the engine.

“Alright, hold on,” she says, unbuckling both of their seatbelts, and then hurrying out of the car and over to the passenger side to help Chloe out. “You have your key, right?” She questions as she locks her car, hand settled almost protectively on the taller girl’s back, just in case she needs to catch her. Fortunately, it seems Chloe can walk in a straight line still, though that doesn’t make Beca move her hand away, and she stays close as they head toward the building.

“I do,” Chloe nods, reaching into her purse to produce the keycard. It’s lucky that there’s a room number printed on it, and soon Beca is guiding the other girl up to the second floor where she and Aubrey’s hotel room is situated.

“Okay, all good?” Beca asks once they reach the correct door. She takes the keycard and slips it into the slot, carefully pushing it open.

“No,” Chloe whispers, though it’s a loud whisper, the kind that drunk people do when they think they’re being quiet. She grabs ahold of Beca’s hand, and the brunette doesn’t pull away. Instead she just eyes her for a moment as the redhead brings her finger up to her lips. “Shh. We have to be quiet, Aubrey’s sleeping.”

“We?” Beca questions, though Chloe is soon tugging her through the door and into the dark room, the soft sound of Aubrey’s sleep-laced breathing breaking through the stillness of what’s otherwise a calm, quiet room.

“It’s pretty late,” Chloe states very matter-of-factly, her voice still hushed, though not as much as it really should be. Luckily, Aubrey doesn’t seem to be stirring. “You can’t drive home now. You should just stay here. You can share my bed, it’s okay.”

Normally, the idea would be completely laughable to her, but in spite of the way she pauses, almost hesitating for a moment, the word ‘no’ doesn’t seem to be computing in Beca’s mind. She really should go home, it’s only a short drive, but Chloe is leading her toward the bed, hand still in her own, and Beca finds herself following.

They don’t change for bed. Not that Beca has pajamas with her anyway, but Chloe remains in her dress, too. They slip off their jackets, and it’s without further hesitation that Beca finds herself climbing into the bed beside Chloe.

“I don’t normally bring my dates back to my hotel room. At least not on the first date,” Chloe whispers, the playful tone in her voice evident even at its quieter volume.

“Date?” Beca quirks a brow, though the smile on her lips is an amused one. She can’t see Chloe’s expression, the room is too dark, so she’s pretty sure she can’t see hers, either. “It was a thank you for the tire dinner, wasn’t it?”

“Mm,” Chloe mumbles, her voice laced with exhaustion. She rolls onto her back, and Beca can see her silhouette in the light through the window now. She can see her lashes, she can tell her eyes are closed. “Thank you for the tire,” Chloe continues, voice hushed, still mumbly. “And the date.”

Beca doesn’t protest. Actually, she doesn’t say anything. But in doing so, she doesn’t protest.

***

“Oh my _God_ , Chloe. You brought her back here?”

Aubrey’s voice is unfamiliar, much like Beca’s surroundings as her eyes blink open. The sun is streaming through the open blinds, filtering right onto her face, and it takes her a couple seconds to realize where she is. Her plan had been to slip out of bed once Chloe had fallen asleep, but no sooner had their heads hit the pillows were they both out like a light, and evidently her plan had not worked out the way she’d expected it to.

“What?” Chloe’s voice is mumbly, it’s lazy. It’s thick with sleep, and Beca sees, as she turns her head to glance over toward her, that her eyes are still closed. It’s not surprising really -- Chloe really had been pretty drunk last night.

The last thing Beca wants is for anyone to think she’d taken advantage of that, of course. She hadn’t. She’d literally fallen asleep as soon as she’d gotten into bed, and there’s a certain level of panic washing over her as she sits quickly upright, the blankets falling to reveal her outfit still very much intact. Chloe’s too.

“Whoa, this is not what it looks like,” Beca quickly states, shaking her head. She’s about to continue, to explain that Chloe had been really drunk and needed help getting back to the hotel, but Aubrey shakes her head, cutting her off.

“I don’t have time for this,” the blonde states, and Beca can suddenly hear that there’s panic in her voice. She sees that she’s tossing things into her suitcase, almost haphazardly.

“Aubrey, what’s going on?” Chloe asks, having apparently adjusted to her surroundings. She’s sitting up now too, concern written across her features. Beca doesn’t know Aubrey, but she knows that something is wrong with her.

“It’s my aunt,” Aubrey says, though she doesn’t look over at them. She’s still stuffing her belongings into her suitcase.

“What? What happened?” Chloe is peeling herself quickly from the bed, and while she’s a little unsteady on her feet, she makes her way over to Aubrey, protectively placing her hands on the other girl’s arms. “Aubrey, what happened?”

The blonde doesn’t answer her question, but it’s obvious that she’s crying when she responds. “I’m sorry, Chlo. We have to cut this trip short.”

Beca sees the expression on Aubrey’s face, it’s a vivid mixture of both sadness and guilt as she continues. “We have to go home.”


	3. Chloe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I didn't like this chapter to begin with, but it eventually grew on me, so here we go. I hope you all like it! Questions, comments, suggestions, etc. are always welcome both here on the chapter and in my [tumblr](http://snowbritt.tumblr.com/) inbox.

Disoriented. Bewildered. Utterly confused. Those are all perfectly good words to describe how Chloe is feeling as her eyes blink slowly open. Her lids flutter shut a few times as she attempts to adjust to the brightly lit room, the morning sun streaming through the window, though the panic lacing Aubrey’s tone is what finally snaps her to reality.

She doesn’t really have the time to unpack just why and _how_ Beca is in her bed with her, though she does shoot her a somewhat puzzled glance as she climbs from the bed to go comfort her friend.

Chloe knew something like this was going to happen. Although an optimist through and through, she’d almost been expecting them to receive a call about Aubrey’s aunt, and a pang of guilt surges through her at the thought.

“She’s really sick,” Aubrey says, voice higher pitched and thick with fresh tears. “My mom called, she said things have gotten worse. We really have to go home. My dad’s booking plane tickets for us right now.”

Chloe, still not fully awake nor fully focused, tries to keep up, her head nodding slowly in feigned understanding. Her curls are matted now, they tickle her bare shoulders, and she lifts a hand to scratch the itch. In doing so, she notices a mark between the side of her neck and her shoulder, and suddenly the memory of her trying to climb out of Beca’s car last night with her seatbelt still fastened in place hits her. That’s why Beca’s here, it’s coming back to her now. Beca drove them back. And Chloe’s car is still at the bar.

“Wait,” she finally says, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. “I can’t fly anywhere, what about my car? We have to drive back.”

Aubrey has gone back to stuffing the last of her belongings into her large suitcase, and Chloe sees her shake her head rapidly. “There might not be time.”

She doesn’t want to make things more stressful. In fact, that’s the absolute last thing she wants to do, but as Chloe begins to focus, the rational side of her takes over. Her voice is soft as she speaks, it’s almost apologetic. “Aubrey, I can’t just leave my car.” Her words are spoken almost cautiously, she doesn’t want to seem insensitive.

Aubrey’s eyes close for a moment, and then she’s nodding her head. “You’re right,” she says, apparently having regained some composure herself. She has just finished zipping her suitcase closed, and turns toward Chloe with a somewhat sympathetic look. “I’m sorry, you’re right. And you shouldn’t have to leave this trip. I’m going to call my dad and tell him it’s just one ticket and that I’ll be flying alone.”

“Aubrey…” Chloe’s eyes are wide, they’re sad. She has to be realistic, but she also doesn’t want to leave her friend in what’s clearly a time of need.

The blonde shakes her head, hands soon settling themselves comfortingly on Chloe’s forearms. “It’s okay, I want you to finish the drive. You go to San Francisco like we planned, you check everything out, and if things improve with Aunt Sara then I’ll fly out there to meet you. And if they don’t…” She trails off, tongue flicking across the part in her lips as she fights to keep her composure. “Well, never mind that. But we had a plan, Chlo. I really think that you should stick to it. One of us needs to make the visit if we want to move out there after graduation. I still want us to do that no matter what happens, but one of us has to check things out first.”

It’s entirely like Aubrey Posen to take charge and find the strength she has no obligation to exude. Chloe admires her for it, she always has. She offers her a sad kind of smile in return, and against her better judgment, maybe almost a little selfishly, she shakes her head, voice meek and quiet. There’s a certain rasp to it that she can only assume has come along with how loud she was probably singing when drunk in the bar last night. “I don’t want to drive all that way alone.”

Chloe has never been the most confident driver, and Aubrey knows that. But for perhaps the first time ever, there’s also nothing the blonde can do. There’s no solution. “I’m sorry, Chloe. I have to leave.”

Chloe shakes her head. “No, I know. I understand, I want you to go be with your family. It’s just…” She trails off, evidently at a loss, too.

“I’ll go with you.”

The voice from behind her catches her off guard for a brief moment, it’s almost like she’d forgotten Beca was even there, but her words have both Chloe and Aubrey turning to look at her.

“What?” Aubrey asks, her brows knitting tightly. Chloe isn’t looking at her, she’s too focused on studying Beca, but she can imagine her exact expression. She can feel the way her gaze is burning into the other girl in the room, the one still sitting upright in the bed.

“I said I’ll go. To San Francisco,” Beca clarifies, finally peeling herself from the bed. She brushes her fingers through her messy locks, addressing Aubrey first. “You have to get back to your aunt, and Chloe doesn’t want to drive alone. I don’t have any big commitments here right now, I’ll go with her.” She pauses, eyes finally meeting with Chloe’s. It’s only at that point that the redhead realizes she’s staring at the shorter girl, though she doesn’t bother to look away. “I mean, if you want me to, anyway,” Beca adds, gently shrugging a shoulder.

Chloe doesn’t even have the chance to respond before Aubrey’s voice interrupts her thoughts.

“Don’t you have a job?”

“Aubrey!” Chloe snaps, shooting a glare her friend’s way. The question had sounded rude, and while Chloe is making exceptions for Aubrey’s behavior right now, all things considered, she also isn’t trying to offend anybody. In spite of the way she snaps at her friend, she can’t help but wonder the same thing.

Fortunately, Beca doesn’t seem too offended.

“I do,” she shrugs, nodding her head once. “But it’s a family business. I work for my uncle, he’ll be fine with me leaving for a little bit.”

Chloe wonders if she knew that already, if Beca had told her last night, but for now, most of their evening together is a blur. It’s coming back in small stages, but Chloe had apparently gotten way more drunk than intended.

Aubrey doesn’t have a response this time. Instead, she just glares again, almost as if she’s sizing her up. Chloe understands it, she understands how protective Aubrey is of her, but in this one instance, she feels as though it’s not necessary. Sure, maybe Beca was a complete stranger this time yesterday, but there’s something about her, something that Chloe can’t quite put her finger on. She knows that she’s safe with her, though. She can just feel it.

“I can’t ask you to do that,” the redheads says, offering the shorter girl a small, grateful smile.

“You’re not asking me,” Beca shrugs a shoulder, “I’m offering. Besides, I’m moving to California soon, I could use the practice drive.” She pauses, motioning to Chloe almost hesitantly. “No offense, but you can’t drive anywhere today anyway. You kind of went to town with the beer last night.”

Chloe knows she’s right, and can’t help the way she laughs softly under her breath. Maybe she isn’t the only one in the room lacking a filter. With Beca, though, she finds it charming. She finds Beca charming, in fact.

“Chloe, can I talk to you for a second?” Aubrey’s question isn’t exactly spoken as such, it’s more of an order, and she feels the blonde’s hand gently taking ahold of her arm and guiding her over toward the bathroom. She shoots Beca an apologetic look, before disappearing behind the door with her friend.

“You can’t seriously be considering driving across the country with a _stranger_ ,” Aubrey frowns, hands now planted on her hips. “We don’t know her, Chloe. This sounds like the beginning of a horror movie.”

Again, Chloe understands the concern, but again, she doesn’t feel it necessary. “Beca is not a stranger. I spent the whole night with her last night. She helped us out yesterday for no reason at all, she didn’t expect anything in return.”

Aubrey cuts her off. “And don’t you think that’s a little weird? She didn’t want anything from us?”

Before Chloe can respond, there’s a faint knock on the door, followed by the sound of Beca’s voice.

“Uh, thank you guys for whispering for my benefit…”

It’s only at that point that Chloe realizes how loud they were being, how Beca definitely heard everything so far. The thought makes her blush slightly, but she also finds herself biting back a smile. It’s a funny situation, if not an entirely strange one; she can’t help it.

Aubrey takes a step forward to tug open the door.

“I promise I’m not a murderer or whatever you’re worrying about,” Beca continues. “I can show you ID, I can link you to my social media accounts. You can run a whole background check on me if you want to. I really just want to help.”

The way she pauses makes it seem as though she wanted to add something else, but she doesn’t. Chloe eyes her momentarily, trying to figure her out, but the moment gray eyes are locking with blue, she notices the expression on her face smoothing out, until there’s a subtle smile tugging at her lips.

“We don’t think you’re a murderer,” Chloe promises, her soft laugh sounding quietly again. “I’m fine with you coming along, I just don’t want to get you into any trouble with your uncle for ditching work or anything. Are you sure he won’t mind?”

Whether she’s somehow performing a background check or doing something else entirely, Chloe doesn’t know, but Aubrey is tapping away at her phone screen, and doesn’t bother to protest any further.

“Trust me, he won’t care.”

Chloe doesn’t even realize she’s still staring, that her line of sight is still trained on Beca. Though she doesn’t bother to tear it away once it comes to her attention, because Beca is staring right back at her, too. She thinks she sees the brunette’s lips arching slightly at the corners, and Chloe can’t help the way she mirrors the gesture.

“Okay, I told my dad it’s just the one ticket.” Aubrey pipes up, eyes still down on her phone. “Beca, what’s your Facebook name?”

***

Beca drives both girls to the airport, and while Chloe feels guilty for sending her on her way alone, she also knows they have no other option. Besides, Chloe doesn’t know Aubrey’s family all that well, it’s not like she’ll be missed. She just wants to be there for Aubrey, though they promise to call and text to keep one another updated, and then Beca is driving Chloe back to the bar to pick up her car. Next, it’s on to Beca’s place to pick up her belongings.

“Are you _absolutely_ sure about this?” Chloe questions as she watches Beca lug her suitcase into the trunk. There’s space available now that Aubrey’s things are gone.

“Positive,” Beca nods, closing the trunk once her stuff is securely in place. Chloe had offered to help her load it all in, but Beca had insisted that she was fine. She’s kind of an independent person, Chloe is learning. Beca’s roommate, Fat Amy, had been way less concerned about Chloe than Aubrey had about Beca, and actually seems kind of jealous that she can’t come along, too. Chloe extends the invitation, but Amy has other commitments. She feels almost bad for being happy about it… Not that Amy can’t come with them, but that it’s just going to be her and Beca. She doesn’t know exactly why.

“I can’t murder you if I stay here, right?” Beca quirks a brow in Chloe’s direction.

The redhead’s nose wrinkles in return, though she soon finds herself playfully rolling her eyes, a soft laugh escaping her lips. “Dork. Aubrey would flip out if she heard you saying that.”

The amused smile on the brunette’s lips is natural, it’s easy. “Listen, for all I know, you’re the murderer here,” Beca shrugs, though there’s absolutely no concern on her expression. If anything, she seems pretty amped to get going, and is making her way to the driver’s side of Chloe’s car.

“Or,” Chloe pipes up, lifting a finger, “ _Or_ , consider this. Neither of us is a murderer.”

Beca fakes a shocked look. “What? You mean we’re just two girls, going on an innocent road trip together? The horror!”

Chloe’s soft giggle in response sounds as she switches sides with the other girl, heading quickly over to the passenger side. Beca was right earlier, Chloe is in no fit state to be driving. The short drive from the bar to Beca’s apartment had been taxing enough. “I was right,” she teases, slipping into the passenger seat and fastening her seatbelt in place. Beca is already seated in the driver’s side. “You are a dork.”

It’s not the first time she has thought it, but being with Beca is just so easy, it’s so simple. Chloe considers herself a sociable person in general, someone who can get along with anybody right away, but there’s something different about Beca. She can’t put her finger on it, but she also isn’t trying to question it. When something just comes so naturally with someone, why bother, right?

“Beca, wait!” The voice is muffled, considering it’s coming from outside of the vehicle, though both girls look up to see Amy hurrying toward them with a navy case clutched in her fingers. Chloe rolls down the passenger window as soon as the other woman breathlessly reaches the car. “You forgot your passport.”

She hands it to Chloe, who takes it with a slight giggle.

“We’re not leaving the country, Ames,” Beca frowns. She earns herself a pained groan from the blonde.

“You mean I vertical ran all the way here for nothing?”

“It’s fine,” Beca nods, “I’ll take it. Thanks, Amy.”

Amy is doubled over, hands planted on her knees as she tries to catch her breath. Chloe is about to ask if she’s okay, before the blonde is standing upright again, cheeks a little flushed, but otherwise she seems fine.

“Alright, get out of here,” Amy says, tapping the side of Chloe’s door. The engine sounds, then Chloe is sending Amy a wave through the open window as they begin to pull away from the sidewalk, headed for their next destination.

“Amy is nice,” Chloe comments, absentmindedly opening up the passport in her hand. Her gaze drifts over the details.

“God, don’t look at that,” Beca whines, apparently having seen her from the corner of her eye. “I look like a criminal.”

Chloe giggles softly in response. “Nobody looks good in their passport picture. You look kind of cute, though.” She pauses, nose wrinkling. “Wait, you’re only nineteen?”

“Yeah,” Beca nods her head, and Chloe notices her eyes flickering over toward her, though she keeps her face turned to the road. She sees a slight hint of worry in the other girl’s eyes. “Is that a problem? How old are you?”

Evidently, they don’t know too much about one another yet, but that’s okay. It does make their situation somewhat laughable, but it’s not a deterrent.

“Nope, not an issue. I’m twenty-one,” Chloe explains, closing the passport and slipping it into the passenger door pocket. “You were drinking last night, though.” She gasps, though it’s forced, and the way her lips are curved upward despite her mouth hanging open shows that she’s just playing. “Rebel!”

She sees Beca shake her head, her amused look having returned. “I have a fake ID. I know it’s, like, totally juvenile, but there’s really nothing to do around here other than go to bars. It’s kind of sad.”

Chloe cuts her off. “I’m not judging. I had a fake up until my birthday, too. You seem really mature for nineteen.”

Beca’s brow arches. “You say that like you’re not only two years older than me. When’s your birthday?”

“June seventh. When’s yours?”

“September twenty-second. You literally just saw my passport.”

“True. I was focusing on the year. Virgo, though, huh?”

“You just magically know that?” Beca’s brow raises again. She looks amused as she glances briefly over toward Chloe, but then she’s focusing on the road again. Like Aubrey, she’s a careful driver, which Chloe is of course pretty happy about.

“Sure I do,” Chloe shrugs. “You don’t seem like a Virgo, though.”

“What does a Virgo seem like?”

“Well, for starters Virgos are known for their rule-keeping. And you have a fake ID that you actively use to go on dates in bars with girls, so.” She shrugs a shoulder, her tone playful.

She hears Beca chuckle quietly in response. “Dork.”

“That makes two of us then.” She pauses briefly, eyeing Beca for a moment, the smirk on her lips a subtle one. “You didn’t correct me.”

“About?”

“Last night. About it being a date.”

Beca’s pause is even more brief than Chloe’s. “I didn’t.”

There’s a silence, though not an uncomfortable one. Chloe uses it to try to read the situation. Did they just decide that they really did go out on a date last night? And if so, does that mean this is _still_ a date? She doesn’t know, and Beca doesn’t really give her the chance to question it any further.

“What kind of music do you like?” The brunette asks, reaching a hand out to hit the up volume button on the display. She doesn’t play it loudly, just enough that they can hear it while still being able to focus on each other. There’s a chart song playing. “This kind of stuff?”

Chloe shrugs a shoulder. “Mostly.”

All Beca does is nod in response.

“Music is your thing, right? Do you think this is good?”

Again, the shorter girl nods. “I do, but I would mix it with something else. That’s kind of what I do, I make mashups. Do you know David Guetta?”

“Of course I know David Guetta.”

“Wait, _personally_?”

“What? No, obviously not personally. I know his–” She pauses as she notices Beca from the corner of her eye, the amused grin on her lips causing Chloe to roll her eyes, though it’s done in jest.

“I actually have this song as a mashup on my computer with his song Titanium.”

Chloe is now intrigued, and looks over at Beca expectantly. “Oh? You brought your computer with you, right?”

“I did.”

“So maybe I can hear it later?”

Beca nods. “Maybe.”

***

There’s never any lag in conversation, though Chloe isn’t too surprised about that. Even if the other person has nothing to input, she finds that she’s able to fill most silences anyway, but that isn’t an issue with Beca.

She learns that the brunette works at her uncle’s auto-shop, which suddenly makes the fact that she drives around with spare tires and tools much more understandable. Chloe really doesn’t know the first thing about cars, outside of how to drive them. She finds it impressive that Beca does, though. The same way Beca seems to find it impressive that Chloe _thinks_ that she maybe wants to be a teacher, though she’s currently undecided. For a person usually so sure of herself, her future is kind of blurry right now, but she’s trying not to be too concerned.

“Am I keeping you awake?” Beca questions, brow arching as Chloe yawns for what feels like the millionth time.

“No,” she promises, shaking her head, though she says it through yet another yawn. “No, you’re not. It’s my own fault. I’m kind of hungover from last night,” she admits, her frown aimed at herself.

Beca chuckles quietly in response. “Makes sense. You know, if you need to nap or something then you can, right? We still have a good few hours to go yet.”

Although Chloe protests, insistent that she’s fine and wants to keep Beca company, she eventually does knock out pretty quickly after.

By the time her eyes are flickering open again, the sun seems to be setting outside, though that’s not the thing she takes the most notice of as she blinks back to consciousness.

_“Cut me down, but it’s you who has further to fall.”_

It takes her a moment to register the soft sound of singing coming from beside her. She doesn’t realize at first that there’s no music to go along with it.

_“Ghost town, haunted love.”_

It’s Beca. That melodic sound, it’s coming from the woman in the driver’s seat, and although it’s hushed, Chloe can tell just how incredible she sounds. She stays in position, face toward the window, and pretends to be asleep.

_“You shoot me down, but I won’t fall. I am titanium.”_ Beca is eventually singing the last line. _“I am titanium.”_

“You didn’t tell me you could sing,” Chloe finally says once the brunette reaches the very last note. She turns her head to face Beca now, and notices the way the other girl jumps slightly in her seat. It’s kind of cute, Chloe thinks. But she doesn’t say so.

“Jesus,” Beca mutters, bringing one hand from the wheel to cover her heart. She laughs quietly, shaking her head as she repositions her hand on the wheel.

“Sorry,” Chloe grins, pushing herself upright in her seat now.

“No, it’s okay. I just didn’t know you were awake, that’s all. Wait, did I wake you?”

“No, I don’t think so,” Chloe assures, gaze flickering to the clock on display. According to that, she’s been asleep at least two hours, and suddenly she feels bad for leaving Beca alone that long. Though the other woman doesn’t seem to mind; she’d evidently been content to drive and sing to herself, anyway.

“You have a beautiful voice,” the redhead comments, sending a small smile toward the driver’s side.

“Yeah? You have a beautiful face,” Beca responds, though it seems as though she hadn’t meant to, not if the way she pauses so quickly is anything to go by. Chloe notices the way the other girl’s eyes widen slightly. “Sorry, I don’t know why I said that.”

Chloe is the one to laugh this time, though it’s done quietly and under her breath. “Don’t apologize. Did you mean it?”

Beca’s fingers tighten around the steering wheel, and the sight of her black polished nails brings Chloe back to the two of them last night. The way she watched as the other girl’s fingers wrapped coolly around her beer bottle, the color choice seeming very Beca Mitchell, at least as much as Chloe knew about her.

“I did,” she finally says, nodding her head once, though her eyes are trained on the road ahead of her.

“Well, then thank you,” Chloe is the one to nod this time, her own gaze on the woman beside her. Her voice is soft, the same as her smile. Unlike Beca, Chloe has no problem with dishing out compliments, especially not when they’re deserved. “You’re beautiful, too.”

It seems Beca doesn’t know exactly how to respond. Perhaps she doesn’t receive compliments very often, although Chloe finds that hard to believe. She studies the other girl’s face, turned toward her unashamedly. She knows that Beca sees her from the corner of her eye.

“It’s getting kind of late,” Beca finally says, clearing her throat as her gaze flickers toward the clock, then she’s focusing back to the road again. “You maybe want to stop for food or something?”

Chloe quirks a brow, though there’s a smile still settled comfortably on her lips. “Are you asking me on a second date?”

Beca doesn’t look at her, though Chloe is sure she can see her lip twitching into the most subtle smile as she responds.

“I don’t think our first one ended yet, did it?”


End file.
